Pike Street residents want builders’ waste removed
Residents of Pike Street, Kitty say they have been disrespected, after the contractor who was constructing the post office, dumped all of the construction waste on the side of the road.
Mervyn Parris, a resident of Pike Street, related to Stabroek News that he was disgusted that the waste had been left on the northern side of the road for more than three weeks, and even after reaching out to the relevant authorities, nothing had happened.
He explained that some three weeks ago he had raised concerns with the contractors about the builders’ waste clogging the drains, and was told that it would be taken care of. However, the man said, he was surprised that it was moved from the gutter and onto the side of the road, creating an obstruction and an unnerving sight.
“It is really wrong. On Friday night, a car came swerving into the street and they had other cars parked on the other side of the road and a woman and her child were walking. She had to rush into the corner and onto the waste or else she would’ve gotten hit,” Parris explained to this publication yesterday.
“If you are talking about urban development, you have to take into consideration the growth of the population and the people that live in and out of the area,” he said, while emphasizing that the dumped waste is a traffic hazard, and there is also the risk of it falling back into the drain from which it had been removed.
Parris said he couldn’t fathom why the contractor would dump the waste in the drain, and he found it more unbelievable that when it was eventually moved it was not taken away immediately, but just placed at the side of the road.
“It is absolutely disgusting. Why couldn’t they put it into a truck and cart it away? It shows they don’t have respect for the residents of Pike Street and the residents of Kitty and it should not be tolerated,” Parris said, while stating that he hopes the relevant authorities will address the situation as soon as possible, and deal severely with the persons who were responsible for leaving the waste on the street.
He also explained that when it rains some of the waste would be washed back into the drains, which is counterproductive and only makes the situation go back to the way it was originally.
Other residents also supported Parris’s sentiments and pointed out that the waste takes up a lot of space that hampers parking and sometimes driving along the street.
“This is unfair. You are talking about a cleaner and greener Georgetown and Guyana, and this is what people are still doing,” Parris said, while stating that it was unbelievable that the waste was left in the gutter in the first place and even more unbelievable that it has been on the side of the street for almost a month without anyone attending to it.
Parris also took Stabroek News to Alexander Street where he pointed out an old rusted metal filing cabinet on the side of the road, which initially had been tossed into the drain.
The residents said that they are calling on the relevant authorities to quickly address the issues, so their street and environment can regain its beauty.